Google’s Waze to Launch New Carpooling Pilot Program in Israel

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Waze is launching a new carpooling pilot program in Israel Photo: Google Images.

JNS.org– Google’s Waze app has announced that it is launching a new carpooling pilot program in Israel that will allow commuters to pay fellow drivers a small fee to share a ride to and from work.

In an announcement on its blog, Waze said it is “calling all Israeli Wazers who commute in Gush Dan” for help in participating in its new carpool app.

Google acquired Waze, an Israeli startup company that uses information from user’s phones for real-time traffic information, in 2013 for about $1 billion.

According to Waze, RideWith “is an easy way to connect with people who have similar commutes, so you can ride together on the fastest route.” As such, the riders also pitch in on the cost of gas and wear and tear on the vehicle by reimbursing the driver via the app when the ride is complete, based on a calculation by the app. Unlike Uber, the RideWith drivers will not earn a salary.

Waze warned that at first, due to the small number of users, certain routes may not work in the app. Waze hopes that RideWith will help reduce travel and fuel costs as well as the number of cars on the road, strain on the environment, and parking stress.